How Todrick Hall Got Taylor Swift to Finally Talk About LGBTQ Rights

by Christopher Rudolph

59m ago

“Maybe a year or two ago, Todrick and I are in the car, and he asked me, ’What would you do if your son was gay?’”

According to Taylor Swift that question is what prompted the Lover singer to take a more public stance when it came to LGBTQ rights.

“The fact that he had to ask me… shocked me and made me realize that I had not made my position clear enough or loud enough,” she reveals in Vogue’s September issue. “If my son was gay, he’d be gay. I don’t understand the question.”

“If he was thinking that, I can’t imagine what my fans in the LGBTQ community might be thinking. It was kind of devastating to realize that I hadn’t been publicly clear about that,” she continues.

The profile’s author, Abby Aguirre, then asks Swift why she is so vocal about LGBTQ issues now, citing her video for “You Need to Calm Down” which featured queer celebs, a GLAAD shout out, and urging to her fans to sign a petition supporting the Equality Act. Swift responds by saying “rights are being stripped from basically everyone who isn’t a straight white cisgender male.”

“I didn’t realize until recently that I could advocate for a community that I’m not a part of. It’s hard to know how to do that without being so fearful of making a mistake that you just freeze,” she continues. “Because my mistakes are very loud. When I make a mistake, it echoes through the canyons of the world. It’s clickbait, and it’s a part of my life story, and it’s a part of my career arc.”

As NewNowNext previously reported, Swift also made a generous donation to GLAAD. “Taylor Swift continues to use her platform to speak out against discrimination and create a world where everyone can live the life they love,” said GLAAD president Sarah Kate Ellis in a statement. “GLAAD is so thankful for her donation to support our advocacy efforts and for her ongoing work to speak out for what is fair, just, and LGBTQ inclusive. In today’s divisive political and cultural climate, we need more allies like Taylor, who send positive and uplifting messages to LGBTQ people everywhere.”

The Grammy winner reportedly donated about $113,000 to the Tennessee Equality Project (TEP) in April, thanking the organization for its ongoing fight to prevent anti-LGBTQ bills from becoming law in her home state.